Teenager Admits That He Shot 7 Children at Zoo

A teenager admitted Wednesday to firing the shots that wounded seven children outside the National Zoo on Easter Monday.

Antoine B. Jones, 17, agreed to accept criminal responsibility under a proposed plea agreement that could send him to prison for 25 years or longer.

“You are pleading guilty to seven felonies?” asked District of Columbia Superior Court Judge Noel Anketell Kramer.

“Yes, ma’am,” Jones said. Wearing an orange prison jumpsuit, Jones told the judge he intended to harm others when he fired several shots into a crowd just outside the main entrance of the National Zoo on April 24.

Attorneys are recommending that Jones serve 25 years in prison. The judge has already ordered him to pay $1,400 to the district’s crime victim assistance fund.